1. Field of Use
This invention pertains generally to a three-dimensional movable figure display device which is used for advertising or amusement purposes and which simulates, for example, a flying insect or creature in the form of a butterfly, fly, hummingbird or bat attached to the end of a flexible wire. The wire and flying object are driven by an electric motor for rotation of the object about its support.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,458 issued Feb. 20, 1990, and assigned to an assignee common with the present invention, discloses apparatus of the general type to which the present invention relates. In that prior art patent, however, the one end of the wire is fixed to the driven member in such a manner that the wire and its object attached to the other end bodily rotate with each rotation of the driven member. The members are driven by an electric motor of the battery operated type and at substantial speeds. Consequently, such a connection of the wire to the driven member causes undue wear and loading on the electric motor and not a gentle fluttering action of the flying object attached to the outer end of the wire.
Other examples of prior art of the general type to which the invention relates is U.S. Pat. No. 4,949,486 issued Aug. 21, 1990 in which the wire supporting the flying object is attached directly to an electrically driven shaft and rotates bodily and generally at the same speed of the the form of a bottle. At the lower end of the support is an electric motor having a ribbon directly attached to the shaft of the electric motor for rotating the ribbon rapidly to simulate a flowing liquid. Both of the latter patents are assigned to an assignee common with the present invention.